Kiss My Backpack is an English-language website designed to help international visitors plan their trip to Bulgaria. The platform provides practical, local knowledge that explains how things actually work on the ground, addresses common concerns and misconceptions, and answers real planning questions.
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Hi everyone! I’m Stef, founder of Kiss My Backpack, a Bulgaria-focused travel platform for English-speaking travelers. I work at the intersection of destination content, SEO, and local storytelling. Happy to continue the discussion here.
Why I built an English-language travel brand for Bulgaria
Bulgaria consistently surprises visitors, and yet it remains largely absent from mainstream travel conversations.
As someone living and working in the country, I kept noticing the same pattern: first-time visitors arrive with very little information, outdated expectations, and almost no context about what Bulgaria actually offers. When they leave, they’re often enthusiastic advocates, but the discovery happens by accident, not design.
That gap is what led me to create Kiss My Backpack: an English-language travel platform focused entirely on Bulgaria, built specifically for foreign travelers who are actively planning a trip.
The problem - An underrated destination with limited tourism storytelling
Bulgaria has strong raw assets - mountains, ski resorts, thermal spas, historic cities, wine regions, and relatively low costs (although the latter is changing rapidly). But compared to neighbouring destinations, its international tourism marketing is fragmented and inconsistent.
Much of the existing information available in English is either:
- outdated
- overly generic
- written without local context
- or focused on price rather than experience
For travelers used to well-packaged destinations, this creates friction at the planning stage. Not because Bulgaria lacks appeal, but because it lacks clear, trustworthy storytelling.
The solution - A local-first approach, written for foreign tourists
The core idea behind my brand is simple: local knowledge, translated into practical content for international readers.
That means:
- explaining how things actually work on the ground
- addressing common concerns and misconceptions
- focusing on clarity over hype
- and building evergreen content that answers real planning questions
The goal is to become a reliable entry point for people discovering Bulgaria that adds true value for future or returning visitors.
Question - A broader question for the travel industry
Building a destination-focused platform for a lesser-promoted country has made me reflect on a broader issue.
1. As travelers or industry professionals, have you noticed how often genuinely interesting destinations lack clear, practical information, while research results are dominated by the same generic content everywhere?
2. Do you feel there’s value in locally written, experience-led platforms that focus on useful context and real tips, rather than surface-level inspiration?
I’d love to hear how others approach this; both from the traveler and industry side!
And happy holidays everyone :)
Hi Stefani! Nice to find your blog.
Experiences with helpful advice will always have more power and dominance; however, marketing, social media, and search engines seem to favor trends and clichéd content. This is something we have to fight against. ✊
Cheers!
Hi Nelson, and thanks for taking the time 😊
I completely agree, trends come and go. While they can help with short-term visibility, they’re rarely a sustainable long-term strategy, especially if you’re also trying to create genuinely helpful content. For me, it’s also quite time-consuming and not really what I’m aiming for.
That said, there’s been some interesting news around Google Search lately, with the latest updates reportedly favoring smaller, niched websites over the big players, particularly in e-commerce. Hopefully we’ll see the same shift in the travel industry too 🙂
Such a useful resource for first-time visitors. What are the most common misconceptions about traveling in Bulgaria that you find yourself addressing?
Thanks for the great question, Ann!
One of the most common misconceptions is that Bulgaria is unsafe, especially for solo travelers or women. In reality, it’s generally very safe and often feels calmer than many more popular Western European destinations. I often hear from visitors and friends that it feels almost strange at first to be able to walk alone at night or use their phone on the street without worrying it might get snatched.
Another common belief is that Bulgaria is extremely cheap. That information is quite outdated now, particularly in cities and popular tourist areas. That said, there are definitely nuances, and you can still find very affordable accommodation and great restaurants in different regions and rural parts of the country.
Finally, many visitors assume that Bulgarians are rude. This usually comes down to cultural differences. People here tend to be more direct and less theatrical, and most complaints are aimed at the hospitality industry in larger cities and busy tourist spots. Having grown up here, I can confidently say that people are generally lovely, hospitable, and genuinely helpful. They just do not always hide it when they are having a bad day, and you will probably notice it in their eyes. 🙂